And back to ER I go
Yeah, the "no visits to the hospital in 2008!" resolution lasted about as long as a Pamela Anderson marriage. Yesterday, after 30+ hours of total back pain agony, I ended up back in ER. In addition, this time my old pal non-stop vomiting came with me. Between Saturday morning and last night, here's my food diary: a half piece of toast, a bowl of cereal, two oatmeal cookies, a home-made burrito. That's it for 4 days. Since then I've had 8 saltine crackers, a half cup of milk, and a small bowl of cereal....at this rate I'm going to get huge.

But the point of all this is not to complain (sorry if it seems like I am) or to praise the wonders of Percocet and Valium (which I do), but rather to thank all the ER nurses at Peninsula Hospital in Burlingame. Every since time I've been to ER (probably a dozen times in the past 18 months), the nurses have been exemplary. Kind, compassionate, gentle. Even when rushed off their feet, as they were yesterday, my nurse, Lynda, took the time to check in periodically to make sure I was OK, see if I needed anything, and generally make me feel like I wasn't being forgotten.

And she's just one example. Each nurse, from the quiet, middle of the night shift to the busier than hell on a Saturday morning shift has been fabulous. Sure it's the doctors who make the lovely pain-go-away drugs possible, but it's the nurses who give you the most one-on-one attention -- and they do it with admirable skill. They've never failed to make me feel like I was being taken well care of and for that I am beyond grateful to these unsung heroes and heroines.

The two times I was admitted for a week, the floor nurses were equally wonderful. I will always be thankful for those middle-of-the-night chats when I was wide awake and they had time to spend in between seeing to other patients. They make me laugh, gave me a much-needed dose of human contact while being stuck in a hospital, and in all ways were warm, extremely capable, and delightful.

On a side note, I must once again praise Husband for staying by my side during yet another ER trip. In spite of the fact that he's crazy-busy at work, he made me his number one priority; holding my hand, keeping me company, and making sure I was OK. Even after I got out he took care of me; picking up prescriptions, getting me water, and once again treating me like I'm the most important person in the world. Husband, you are amazing. Thank you.